Executive Directors from leading Kenyan institutions at the Kenya Bureau of Standards breakfast meeting to champion excellence through robust management systems highlighting how quality standards drive strategy and elevate performance.
By Peace Muthoka
Nairobi, Kenya – February 17, 2026 – Kenya’s top corporate leaders were Tuesday challenged to take personal responsibility for building globally competitive businesses, as the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) hosted a high-level CEO breakfast meeting in Nairobi.
The meeting, held at the Weston Hotel under the theme “Driving Business Excellence Through Management Systems; The CEO Imperative,” brought together captains of industry, regulators and policy leaders in a candid conversation about leadership, resilience and national competitiveness.
Delivering remarks on behalf of Investments, Trade and Industry Cabinet Secretary Hon. Lee Kinyanjui, Industrialization Secretary Prof. Erastus Gatebe said the responsibility of transforming Kenyan enterprises rests squarely with chief executives.
“You are not merely a gathering of executives,” he told the CEOs. “You are the vanguard, the pathfinders of Kenyan industry.”
He noted that while ISO certification is not mandatory, the leaders in the room had made a deliberate decision to align their organizations with internationally recognized standards.
“That choice speaks to something fundamental about how you lead,” he said.
Prof. Gatebe then painted a picture of a tough global business environment marked by supply chain disruptions, climate volatility, geopolitical tensions and increasingly demanding consumers. In such a setting, he emphasized, survival and growth require deliberate systems.
“Resilience is not accidental. It is architected. And the architecture begins with your management system,” he said.
He explained that standards such as ISO 9001 on quality management, ISO 14001 on environmental management, ISO 45001 on occupational health and safety, ISO/IEC 27001 on information security, ISO 22301 on business continuity, ISO 30401 on knowledge management and ISO 22000 for food safety are not isolated requirements. Instead, they form pillars of one integrated framework designed to make organizations competitive and sustainable.
However, he cautioned that systems alone cannot deliver results without committed leadership.
“No management system survives leadership indifference,” he said. He reminded the CEOs that every ISO standard begins with a clause on leadership and commitment.
“The standard does not say the Quality Manager shall demonstrate commitment. It says top management shall. It says you shall,” he stressed.
According to him, excellence becomes real when CEOs personally demand accountability on customer feedback, safety standards and data protection. Without that visible commitment, he warned, certification risks becoming “a framed piece of paper” rather than a living system that drives value.
The discussion also linked corporate discipline to Kenya’s broader economic ambitions. With the African Continental Free Trade Area opening new markets and Kenya positioning itself as a regional innovation hub, Prof. Gatebe said standards will determine whether local firms can compete.
“Market access alone is not enough,” he noted. “We must demonstrate, credibly and consistently, that a product bearing the Made in Kenya mark meets and exceeds global expectations.”
Earlier, KEBS Managing Director Esther Ngari had set the tone by positioning the standards body as a partner rather than an enforcer.
“We are not asking you to manage six separate systems,” she said. “We are asking you to build one coherent management system that speaks multiple languages of excellence.”
She added that KEBS is adopting integrated audit approaches aligned with international best practice to support businesses while maintaining compliance.
The breakfast also marked a leadership milestone at KEBS, as Chrisantus Wamalwa Wakhungu, CBS, addressed the meeting in his new capacity as Chairman of the KEBS National Standards Council.
In his remarks, Wakhungu invoked the “Singapore Dream,” drawing lessons from Singapore’s founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and his memoir From Third World to First World.
“When you talk of Singapore, you cannot avoid Lee Kuan Yew,” he said, urging CEOs to study leadership as a driver of national transformation.
Using a tree analogy, he explained that financial performance and brand reputation are the visible fruits of an organization, but they depend on strong roots — culture, systems, values and strategic priorities.
He further challenged CEOs to address internal weaknesses decisively.
“If you get a puncture, you either repair it or replace the tyre. If you don’t replace that tyre, you will not go to Singapore,” he said, in a metaphor that drew nods across the room.
Wakhungu also referenced the Pareto principle, encouraging leaders to focus on the critical few actions that yield the greatest results.
At the same time, he reassured the business community that KEBS has transformed its approach. “KEBS is here not as a police, but as an excellence partner,” he said.
Throughout the meeting, one message remained consistent: leadership is the decisive factor. Policies, audits and documentation matter. Yet without CEO conviction, standards will not translate into performance.
The call to action was clear. Every compliant export, every safe workplace and every secure digital system strengthens not only individual companies but also the country’s reputation.
“Every time your organization delivers to the highest standard of excellence, you are not just building your brand,” the CEOs were reminded. “You are building Brand Kenya.”
For the business leaders who filled the Weston Hotel ballroom, the breakfast was more than a networking event. It was a direct challenge to move beyond compliance and lead from the front in shaping Kenya’s excellence agenda.
